Reformed Roma Mission in Ukraine

The Roma Mission in Ukraine was started in 1992 by the Reformed Church. Currently there are 15 Roma communities where there are spiritual and social programs. Every summer Roma children go to camp organized by missionaries, Attila and Livia Tomes.

Saturday, June 30, 2007

Monday, January 22, 2007

Report

Thanks to our Lord, we had a lot of blessing in our Ministry and also in our family.In 2005 we started a building project in the Mission Centre and it was running in 2006. We wanted to finish it very quickly because we needed the building done for the leadership training and summer camps. Just before the summer camp the conference room was finished upstairs and two rooms there. In the conference room there can sit 25-30 people during a seminar or training. There is also a new heating system in the whole building. But for the heater we did not have enough money. We made also a fire system in the building.In springtime we had leadership trainings three times with 15 Roma adult people. In these trainings we taught them how to work with children in a congregation, how they can help their pastor and how to find solutions to problems.Before the summer camp we had two meetings with Roma leaders. Together we tried to decide how many children are coming and to divide up them for the 6 weeks.After the schools were finished we started the summer camps. From June 6 till July 15 during 6 weeks Roma children had summer camps. There were about 400 Roma children who took part in summer camp. Thanks to our God, they could feel themselves very good and also they could study about our God, Lord, Jesus Christ. There were 65 children during a week in the teaching with 10-15 adults. It was very blessed that together Roma and Hungarian adults worked together for the glory of God.The afternoon program was not an easy work every day. But there were volunteers who already worked a diaconal year in different Roma congregation and they also took their part from this work and they worked very hard to make the children enjoy themselves and they liked camps. If we think about the summer camp we could not say there were no problems. There were a lot of different problem but at least we can say it was blessed, children liked it and they give a lot of love and receive also.There were two Hungarian youth groups from Hungary and one Canadian and these people were very helpful during the camp.In springtime we did not have all the money needed for summer camp. We knew we want to serve Him among the Roma people and we knew that these people are important for Him. Our God showed us His mercy and He helped to us to have everything for the children in summer camp. In August, after the summer camp finished, we had a V. World Meeting of Reformed people. As Missionaries we were invited to this meeting. With us we invited a group of Roma kids as a presentation of our Ministry. Attila said some words about Roma people, that it is very important to love them how Jesus loves everyone. The kids group sang some songs after that. We feel that everybody (there were 5000 people) was excited how kids were singing from their heart. Some weeks after the meeting we heard that people thought that was the most important moment in the meeting when the kids were singing.In autumn time we continued the renovation we started with the foundation FUNDAMENT from Holland. There was a really difficult work. In the first floor where the girls were sleeping during the camp were in a very bad situation. So we wanted to renew them. There are 5 rooms and in each room people the old plaster had to pick off and make the new one. The walls were colored, doors and windows were painted, and we bought linoleum for the floors. And at least we could buy the heater for the heating system.The room started to be very nice, there are rooms 2-3-5 beds in it. The first leadership training we had after the renovation in September. Roma leaders liked the new rooms very much and they felt this Mission Centre their own centre. Outside of the building the water system was done. In two sides where the walls inside were always wet we made small roofs.Under the whole Centre building we have a basement. In one part we took there the heater. We made an inside door of the basement and bought new windows in it. For the future we have a plan to make a little kitchen and eating room. We have a big kitchen and eating room what we used for summer camp. But there is no heating in winter time and it is very difficult to organize the leadership training without a kitchen. So that is why we think about to make a little kitchen in the basement.We have a lot of running programs in the Mission Centre. Beside that we have another job we have to do. From September 2006 we had 8 young volunteers from the Diaconal Year program in Hungary, who help in the Roma schools in the different Roma churches. My wife, Livia is their coordinator. These volunteers are in the Roma church of Gát, Nagydobrony, Kisdobrony, and Szürte. We have to visit them and help them till May when they will finish their work in Ukraine.A lot of times we also take part in the struggles of different Roma congregation. For example we started to make a project of clean water and toilets together with the Dorcas foundation. It is our plan too to help them in health problems. In the Roma community the TBC is a very big problem. We want to help them but it is difficult to find a good way. It is a lot of work for us and sometimes it is too much for us. We want to find partners and workers in this Ministry who like Roma people and want to help them.

Through the organization of the Hungarian Reformed Church Mission office, from October 1 every month at the assembly meeting the Transcarpathian Roma Mission presents itself. Here it is possible to exchange experiences with other people who also work with Roma people or would like to work with Roma people. If God allows it, then next year these opportunities will continue.We believe that our efforts are not in vain but blessed by God. Even if many times we don’t see the results, the Holy Spirit works in peoples’ hearts and God guides them.

We want to thank you for all your help, prayers and material support.We are happy to work together and know that we serve to our Lord Jesus Christ.We think we can work together in the New Year, 2007.God bless you, your family, work.Attila and Livia TomesMissionary among the Roma people10 January 2007

Sunday, January 21, 2007

ONE YEAR PROGRAM FOR THE ROMA CENTRE

JANUARY Some days meeting for one congregation 1. Finding right people for the Bible school.Some days meeting for one congregation 2. Finding right people for the Bible school.Some days conference for the Hungarian teachers who are working in the gypsy schools.

FEBRUARYSome days meeting for one congregation 3 . Finding right people for the Bible school.One day meeting for the men of the entire gypsy congregations.Seminar for the volunteers.One day meeting with Roma leaders.

MARCHLeadership training.One day meeting for women of the entire gypsy congregations.Some days meeting for one congregation 4 . Finding right people for the Bible school.

APRILSome days meeting for one congregation 5. Finding right people for the Bible school.Some days meeting with volunteers.Meeting with the Roma leaders and organize the summer camp.

MAYLeadership training .Meeting for the leaders to start organize the summer camp.Meeting with the volunteers and organize the summer camp for them.

JUNE1. Week of the summer camp. 4-9 June2. Week of the summer camp 11-16 June3. Week of the summer camp 18-23 June4. Week of the summer camp 25-30 June

AUGUSTVacation week for the Hungarian children in Papi.One week summer camp with Hungarian Christian parents/childrenSome days meeting for the teachers before the school will start.Meeting with the new volunteers .

SEPTEMBERLeadership training Meeting days for the volunteersTo visit volunteers in their place

OCTOBERSome days meeting for one congregation. Finding right people for the Bible school.One day meeting with Roma leaders.

NOVEMBEROne day meeting for the Roma leaders.

DECEMBERLeadership training.

From September our idea is to start the Bible school, if there would be people who are interested and if there will be teachers and materials. We try to make everything what we can.Now it is also a problem where the people can eat during the winter time. We would like to make a little kitchen and an eating room in the basement.

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Reformed Roma Mission in Ukraine

Friday, July 28, 2006

Pictures

This is the center of the Roma mission of the Reformed Church that they bought four years ago. It is located in a village called Csonkapapi, which is in Ukraine a few kilometers from the Hungarian border. Beginning four years ago, we started renovating the inside and outside of the building and the improvements are still in progress. The fence and the roof of the building are new. The center has been operating even while the missionaries were living in the city of Munkacs, 50 kilometers from the Center.

This is the missionary family in the Reformed Church, Attila and Livia Tomes, and kids Mirjam (9), Debora (7), and Lea (3). Their home is a part of the Mission Center. They direct the Mission Center, organize Leadership Trainings, and summer camps. Outside of the Center, they visit the Roma congregations and oversee their Roma leaders and if needed they help.

The children have just arrived at the camp. They are 7-11 years old. Children came from the villages of Kisdobrony, Telek, Szernye, and Nagydobrony.

This is the courtyard where the children can play and rest in their freetime between programs and lessons.

Learning new songs

Learning Bible verses

During the summer camp, we have two cooks. Throughout the year we have one cook for the Leadership Trainings.

The boys really do look like Indians, which was the program!

Some of the camp leaders also turned into Indians!

Singing competition between congre- gations- the children could earn points for their group for good singing.

Playing parachute games

Making friends

This is Ravi from Nagydobrony. He is eleven.

Doing crafts

The boys are playing football.

The girls are cheering.

Then the girls played too!

The boys show their strength.

Going home on the bus.

Apart from the summer camp we organize leadership trainings for Roma adults one week in a quarter. The adults come from the same congregations as the children. The same 15-20 adults take part in these trainings. In these trainings we try to teach them theoretical knowledge about how they can teach children, how they can lead a Bible study group and help their pastor. We fundraise for the material needs of this program from abroad.

From September we have some running program. These are the running programs:

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Mission among Roma people

Greetings in the name of Christ! We are Attila and Livia Tomes, missionaries in the Reformed Church of Transcarpathia in Ukraine. Six years ago we started our ministry among the Roma people. Roma are very poor people without any education. They live in groups, in very small houses on the outskirts of the villages. In the families there are usually a lot of children, about 5-8 in a family and they don’t go to school. The Roma have darker skin and they are discriminated against by people and the government.We as missionaries started to work with adults and tried to talk about God, about Our Savior Jesus Christ. At the same time we called adults and children to teach them reading and writing. That was not very easy work because we encountered very different customs, thoughts, and laws in the gypsy communities.Three years ago, the Reformed Church bought a building to serve as the center of the Roma mission for the region. The Reformed Church wanted to lift up the Roma nationality and work with them as people. The leaders of the Reformed Church asked us to organize this center while living another town. In order to focus more on the programs and make it more effective, we decided to move here with our family, including three daughters, one year ago. One of our main programs is to bring together the 15 Roma Reformed congregations. Also we organize leadership trainings for adult laypeople so that they can assist the pastor by leading Bible studies and working with children. This program has been running for three years. Since this Mission Center has been in operation, in summertime we have had summer camps financed by support from abroad. During one year of summer camp, there are 450 children and 50 leaders that come from the congregation with the children.During this summer over 400 children came to the summer camp. For one child the cost of the summer camp was 22 dollars. Throughout the six weeks, there were three weeks with children between the ages 7-11 and three weeks with 12-16 year old children. On an average day at camp, the children had Bible study, discussions, devotions, crafts, water games, sport activities, meals, and snacks.If you are interested in our ministry or would like to further support our work among gypsies, you can contact us by email at tomes@citromail.hu.